36-year-old Erika, a mother of seven children from Uzhhorod, had never had an official job. Not because she didn’t want one — life simply worked out in a way that first required caring for her children and managing the household. There was no opportunity to get an education or learn a profession.


When Erika heard that enrollment was open for our professional courses training cleaners (supported by SODI e.V.), she didn’t hesitate for long and decided to take the chance.

The training was intensive: first, she mastered the theory and practice, learned to work with specialized equipment and supplies, passed the exam, and received a certificate from the Kyiv Cleaning School.

Erika also went through individual career counseling and financial literacy training. She learned how to search for a job, communicate with employers, plan her income, and confidently take her first step into the labor market. After completing the training, Erika found her first job ever, at one of the manufacturing facilities in Uzhhorod, and was officially employed.

We know how difficult it is to combine motherhood with work, especially when raising seven children. But Erika’s story proves that even if a person has never had an official job, that doesn’t mean they can never get one. Sometimes all it takes is support from someone who can help them take that first step.

This is exactly how the comprehensive programs of Voice of Romni work for women from vulnerable groups, including Roma women. Professional courses provide new skills, career counseling builds confidence in one’s own abilities, and the financial literacy course helps plan the future better. For Erika, this became the beginning of her new story. And we are sincerely glad that today she can say:

“Now I know I’m capable of more!”